Company Chairman Ed Burkhardt had said a bankruptcy filing was likely following service disruptions because its rail line remains closed in Lac-Megantic (lak may-gahn-TEEK’), Quebec. The Hermon-based company also faces lawsuits and enormous cleanup costs following the July 6 derailment and disaster in Lac-Megantic.

The train had 72 tankers full of crude oil and was unattended when it began rolling, eventually tearing into the town. Burkhardt blamed the train’s operator for failing to set enough hand brakes.